Protesters outside stadium take a knee during anthem

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - About 100 protesters kneeled outside the stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, as the national anthem was played before the NFL game inside.

The protesters chanted along to the beat of a brass band, and then were drowned out by noise from inside the stadium. Fans gathered along the ramps inside the stadium and watched the scene below before the Vikings and Panthers game.

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Officers wearing black riot gear ringed the stadium, and police on bicycles lined up wheel-to-wheel to surround the protesters - demonstrating after the shooting death last week of a man by a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer.

When the national anthem was played, the protesters all dropped to one knee as many NFL players have been doing for weeks to call more attention to issues including police shootings. Inside the stadium, Carolina safety Marcus Ball raised his fist during the anthem.